By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — Jamar Holloway thinks Rockford has more style than its eyewear lets on.
The longtime optician and collector hopes his exhibit at Kortman Gallery can open a few eyes by raising awareness for independent and handcrafted eyewear. He’s curated a collection that blends design and art with paintings and other pieces that focus on eyewear. Each piece is paired with glasses representative of the art on display.
“Independent eyewear has a huge void. Once you leave Cook County you don’t really find any options until you maybe get to Madison or you go to Milwaukee, and I thought that was a shame,” he said. “Rockford is a creative city. There’s a lot of creatives here. There’s a lot of people that care about the arts, and not having access to those options I feel is very limiting.”
Holloway, who has been an optician for about 30 years, is the chief operating officer of Visionary Eye Care in Chicago, where he lived for about 25 years. The 48-year-old Detroit, Michigan, native moved to Rockford in 2018 to be closer to family here, but he still travels to Chicago for work.
In Rockford, he hopes to influence the development of culture in the city in part by immersing himself in the arts. Highlighting highly functional, yet beautifully designed eye glasses was a natural starting place.
“In the Rockford region I’ve noticed there isn’t the representation that I would expect from such a cool city,” he said. “I wanted to see more eyewear that’s representative of the people.”
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Holloway learned to appreciate sight at a young age. He was raised in a house with his grandmother, Rose Hawkins, who was blind, and he cared for her while growing up. Those interactions inspired his commitment to eye health.
“Vision is such a gift,” he said. “Since I was exposed to how precious it was at an early age it always stayed present in my mind.”
Eyewear collections at the exhibit come from some of the designers Holloway features at his business: Claire Goldsmith, Orgreen Optics, Anne et Valentin, Lafont Eyewear, Rolf Eyewear, Frame Chain, Scott Urban Reflectacles and David Spencer Eyewear. A private vintage eyewear collection also is on display.
Artists at the exhibit come from both Rockford and Chicago. They include Brett Whitacre, Jesus Correa, Fatherless, Candice Johnson, Socorro Mucino, Meryl Morris, Brian Estep, Scott Urban and Nick Cashmere.
“Artists and designers have come together, but they all look at their work as art,” said Doc Slafkosky, gallery director. “We take it for granted, but there is obviously a process that’s involved and a creative process — the same that does go into doing a painting. It’s great having them together here.
“We’ve always been trying to kind of blend the art and design world together and let people see that there is a distinction but there’s a lot of similarities in it too, and a lot of influence on our lives.”
About | Artistry in Eyewear
Where: J.R. Kortman Center for Design/Kortman Gallery, 107 N. Main St., Rockford
When: Exhibit runs through Nov. 13
Hours: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday
For more info: 815-968-0123 or visit jrkortman.com
For more o Visionary Eye Care Professionals: visionaryec.com
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas.